How has your 10th Planet game evolved?

[Brian Beaumont AKA Thor]

You can join a gym or a dojo but you belong to 10th Planet. I believe with all my heart that there is something going on here that's bigger than all of us. Sounds like your already part of the family to me. Looking forwards to meeting you one of these days.

[Bill Keeling]

Excellent thread Ari! I started 10th Planet after training with Eddie at a seminar around five years ago. I was a Pedro Sauer Blue belt, and already was a tight guard player (knee squeeze, leg curls etc...) So when Eddie showed me the Rubber Guard, I fell in love with it! It complimented my style so well, it is hard to explain... It was just perfect for my style and flexibility. Then he showed the Lockdown and again I fell in love with the system's strengths, being my strengths. I tapped three or four people with my Lockdown while learning the whip up... It has been a long road since then, used the system to walk the dog in my Academy. Then got shown the door because of training and using 10th Planet. The weird part is Pedro told me to go out and "cross train" with different styles. But my instructor must not have got the memo... But I still use the fundamentals of the system. I am a triangle armbar choke kind of guy, so I use alot of rubberguard to set-up those subs. The deep hooks are crucial to my game now, once my hand gets to my hip, your stuck! TSC has also been a staple, because my top game sucked for so long. Until Eddie taught me TSC and all of a sudden I can hold side control on Black belts (good ones) and not just Purples (which I couldn't even do before...). So it has strengthened my initial game and progressed my top game to a level it had not seen. I am not a big guy 5'10 170, so I always felt light on top, never could hold any top position. But on bottom I could use my entire body and strength and not lose position. Both Demian, Rickson, and Eddie helped to change that! The 10th Planet transitions enable to keep tight and complete control, I love it!!!
My 10th Planet game has evolved my overall Jiu Jitsu game I Love my 10th Planet!!! Eddie actually changed alot in my life besides just BJJ. He is a great friend and coach!!!

[Brandon Palmer]

It is nice to feel like you belong to something. A group with common interests. Eddie has been very kind to me and in the words of Team America, "I treasure his friendship".

I know i'm gonna go rep the Fuck out of 10th Planet this Saturday at NAGA, Masters Expert Lightweight. Gimme that belt fuckers!


And Ari, as to your question. I've gone up and down the ladder with 10thPJJ offensive techs, but I really haven't ever concentrated on the escapes. Well, my worst position to be in is side mounted, so I really dug in and started working all the N/S, Side mount, & mount escapes. I'm B Smith and Jailbreakin all over the place! I think this is really gonna help me master my worst position. Once I get comfortable with that one hole, the sky's the limit. And Eddie is right when he says flexibility will save your ass! I don't even try the typical shrimp or trap an arm & leg mount escapes anymore, I go straight to cross legs and out the back door...usually end up w/ a pretty good leglock too. I'm really loving training right now, every day is something new.

Word.

[frank-theman-james]

Thanks Brian. Makes me feel good to be a part of it as it's happening. I believe we are seeing it as it happens instead of coming in after the fact. As for me, I am teaching out of a local gym now building up my clientele til I can afford my own building. This time if I fail it will be because of me and not outside forces. I am happy that things happened the way they did or I may never have discovered all of this

[Bill Keeling]

"I am happy that things happened the way they did or I may never have discovered all of this"
I second this statement!

[Jon Watkins]

I was into Rubber Guard chains (primarily the Double Bagger options) when I started getting into Jiu Jitsu last year. Now I'm mostly working the half guard sweeps, Truck entrances and options, Monkey Mount tactics, and Swim Move entrances.

[AJ Camacho]

I started with the lockdown and standard closed guard. My coach recommended the RG book and that vastly expanded my half guard game. Since I had the book I played with the RG but my poor posture control and weak squeeze would limit my success. My shoddy grip and child like hands had me using overhook variations and setups of our standard guard moves. The overhook slowly turned into the pyramid since I was reading the books over and over in my off time. The pyramid and overhook game drastically improved my posture control so a year later I began using the RG again but this time with great success.

Meanwhile my lockdown game was getting shut down as people were too acclimated to it. I had to begin using the super stomp, and god father moves as setups back to RG, where I was making good strides. I finally reached a new plateau with my RG game but then my back gave out.

Due to my injury I had to abandon my entire RG game and go back to the lockdown for sweeps only utilizing moves where my lower back could remain in a supine position. From the top I am working basic bread and butter kimura scarf hold stuff. I've recently putting in the numbers for my twister game as well, so I can get more opportunities for the back.

And meanwhile Judo, wrestling, and leg lock development has been going on in the background.

[Ben]

When I started jiu jitsu, it was all rubber guard. So much so that if I couldn't pull guard, I was pretty helpless (in retrospect, may not have been the best place to start). However, even today, it's hard for me to imagine my guard game without the rubber guard. I never understand how guys in MMA feel comfortable just having guys lay in their open guards while they try to play for some crazy triangle/armbar that is either work or get passed. It's nice to have a guy under control and locked away.
However, while my guard game has only evolved in the sense of it going from crappy to less crappy rubber guard, my other aspects have changed a lot. I went from playing a mount based on not getting pulled back into guard and going for basic moves into getting really heavy on the guy and either grabbing head and arm and working for the triangle, or forcing a leg over for a gogo/locoplata from the top. Even though I'm a bit more likely to get rolled doing it, I never worry since it will land me in full guard with them broken down. My half guard has evolved tons. I went from not really having one to having a decent lockdown, and am currently working outside of the 10th Planet System to master the deep half and the open half guard.
While I have a long way to go, I can feel myself learning new things every time I roll. My game gets a bit bigger and badder every day, and it's cool to see how far I've come, and how far I still have to go.

[Ari Bolden]

Wow, these are great stories! Thanks for sharing everyone. Keep them coming!!!

[Brent Smith]

I completely fell in love with the Rubber Guard as soon as I saw it. For quite awhile people would shut that down and I would just get smashed. Although that would happen I never lost faith in its effectiveness eventhough I had many people try to steer me away from it as being ineffective. Now 3 years later I don't feel comfortable using the standard guard (double wrist control) and RG has become my bread and butter. I wasn't really as interested in the other core 10th Planet areas until I was a mid blue belt.
To make a long story short RG was what it was all about and now I've evolved and have become more well rounded.